|
Stream
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, see Stream (disambiguation).
Butchers Creek, Omeo, Victoria, Australia.
A stream, brook, beck, burn, creek, crick, kill, lick, rill, syke, bayou, rivulet, or run is a body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream-banks. Streams are important as conduits in the water cycle, instruments in groundwater recharge, and corridors for fish and wildlife migration. The biological habitat in the immediate vicinity of a stream is called a riparian zone. Given the status of the ongoing Holocene extinction event, streams play an important corridor role in connecting fragmented habitats and thus in conserving biodiversity. Stream is also an umbrella term used in the scientific community for all flowing natural waters, regardless of size. The study of streams and waterways in general is known as surface hydrology and is a core element of environmental geography.
Creeks are the site of recreation as well.
|
